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The two biggest tuna fish brands in the UK are privately looking at delaying or reviewing public commitments to eliminate the use of controversial fishing methods, leaked documents show.
In 2011, Princes and John West pledged to phase out the use of purse seine nets and fish aggregation devices (FADs) which are used to attract tuna but can inadvertently lead to the deaths of other marine life such as sharks, rays and turtles. Each company has around a third of the UK market share for tinned tuna.
But internal documents seen by the Guardian show Princes is likely to miss its target and John West is considering reneging on its target. Princes promised to cut out FADs entirely by the end of this year, but less than a quarter of its tuna is caught without FADs according to a document from this year. John West said it would phase out the devices by 2016, but has privately indicated it wants to re-write its promise and continue using FADs.
No major UK supermarket still uses FADs in their own-brand tuna because of the risk to bycatch such as sharks, rays and turtles, which get caught in giant nets before being tossed overboard, dead or dying. Producers using FADs and purse seine nets have come under pressure from environmental campaigners to pursue alternative methods, such as pole and line.
Greenpeace, which has led a campaign naming and shaming companies with poor records in sustainable fishing, said the companies were back-tracking on earlier commitments.
Sarah North, oceans campaigner at Greenpeace, said: “John West and Princes are the two largest suppliers to the UK market, but their tuna is some of the least sustainable. Despite making commitments to go FAD-free, neither has made much progress and now it looks like they’re both trying to wriggle out of their promises.
“But that’s unacceptable because purse seine fishing using FADs is a truly devastating method of catching tuna and UK consumers expect better than that. It catches a huge array of non-target species, including sharks, rays and turtles.”
In the document, John West said it had concerns about the availability of FAD-free stocks to meet its commitment, and claims to be interested in exploring alternatives such as ‘eco-FADS’. These do not prevent marine creatures congregating around the device, but only prevent entanglement with the FAD directly, so bycatch will continue to be swept up in the purse seine nets.
The document suggests the company is still on track for the 2016 target but: “while to date success has been achieved, we do have concerns about the scarcity of resources going forwards.” It adds: “For this reason we are working proactively to consider alternative sustainable fishing methods – for example, eco-FAD – that will allow us to source sustainably in the future.”
In response to enquiries by the Guardian about the apparent change of heart internally, John West issued a statement that said: “We are a responsible business whose core principles focus on a holistic approach to fishing sustainably. We must recognise that fishing gear and fishing methodologies are important, but only part of the solution to ensuring the sustainability of stocks.
“It is true to say that we do have a concern for future availability of resources. Any business which relies fundamentally on the earth’s natural resources should be concerned about sustainability. This is why we are developing methods to implement sustainable business solutions to ensure we can continue to offer nutritious fish for generations to come.”
Princes is currently less than 25% FAD-free, according to the document, which also suggests the company is planning to forgo the 2014 goal and opt for 2017 instead.
A Princes spokesman said: “Princes is continuing to work towards its target.”
It is estimated that around 70% of the total global purse seine tuna catch is taken using FADs, but this varies depending on the ocean region, fleet and the target species. Purse seine remains the most important gear type used to catch skipjack, yellowfin and bigeye tuna.
As well as increasing the mortality of species that accompany tuna around FADs, the devices reduce the biological production of yellowfin and bigeye tuna stocks.
The preferable alternative to FAD purse seining is pole and line – used in Senegal, the Maldives and Indonesia.
